


Somnus Infinitum

by SolarisRasa



Series: Sol's Malec Whumptober 2020 [19]
Category: Shadowhunters (TV)
Genre: Good Parabatai Jace Wayland, Hurt Alec Lightwood, M/M, Psychological Trauma, Seelie drugs, Sensory Deprivation, Whumptober 2020
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-10-29
Updated: 2020-10-29
Packaged: 2021-03-08 19:34:22
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,054
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/27262057
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/SolarisRasa/pseuds/SolarisRasa
Summary: No 22. DO THESE TACOS TASTE FUNNY TO YOU?Poisoned | Drugged | WithdrawalAndNo 24. YOU’RE NOT MAKING ANY SENSEForced Mutism | Blindfolded | Sensory DeprivationWhen a group of Seelie's comes for a meeting/mixer at the loft, Alec is both irritated and drugged. Magnus and Jace race to save him from the darkness of his mind.
Relationships: Alec Lightwood & Jace Wayland, Magnus Bane/Alec Lightwood
Series: Sol's Malec Whumptober 2020 [19]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1953454
Comments: 13
Kudos: 127





	Somnus Infinitum

Alec rubs his hands together, frustrated at the way his left hand has gone a bit numb. It’s making it difficult to shoot well, something he desperately needs if he’s going to be able to face going home tonight.

Magnus’ seelie guests had been far too friendly and their continued refusal to grant Alec the most basic of respect combined with his husband's inability to be anything other than a perfect host had finally driven Alec from his own home. He wasn’t angry, exactly. He understood why Magnus could not afford to lose his cool with the group but Alec thought it was ridiculous that he couldn’t at least spell their bedroom to be off-limits.

No seelie had tried to go in there until Alec had tried to shut himself in. They had played it off as being “curious” but the unwanted intrusion had only served to show Alec that there was no refugee. Magnus had simply told him that warding part of the loft against them would foster unwanted ill will. 

He was  _ right  _ but it all still chafed and found Alec here instead. He pulled in a breath of crisp air. In New York he would’ve just gone to the Institute or joined a patrol for a few hours, but here in Alicante the city was quiet in the evenings. Sure, the offices were still active but the streets were empty. So here he was, on the relatively safe edges of Brocelind forest at the archery range he’d set up for himself.

Alec digs his thumb a little harder into his left palm, but the numbness seems to go deeper with each passing moment. He sighs, frustrated, and grabs the water bottle he’s brought with him, finishing it in his annoyance. 

Alec tries to lift his bow again, intent on firing despite his hand being weird, but he can’t seem to get his entire left arm to move. He stares at the useless limb, the worry that his frustration was keeping down roars to the front of his mind and he swallows his pride. He needs to call someone, right now.

He pats his pocket with his right hand and then freezes in horror when he realizes he can’t feel it either. Not in the pins-and-needles sense, not like they’ve fallen asleep but like he suddenly doesn’t have limbs at all. 

His breathing is harsh and he knows he’s shaking but as more of his body goes numb and he crumples, no longer able to feel his legs well enough to stay upright, he realizes he can’t even hear his own heartbeat.

Alec blinks widely, or at least he thinks he does and then the witchlight disappears. 

Alexander Lightwood is suddenly engulfed in a vacuum, only his own thoughts, screaming back at him, fill the world. Terror, both at the  _ lack  _ and the thoughts slinging through him.

_ What if I’m not breathing? I can’t feel it, what if I’ve stopped. _

_ Do I even have a body anymore? _

_ Angel, am I dead?  _

_ No one knows where I am. _

That last thought chases itself around the most. Removed from the physical manifestations of fear Alec is left only with the mental affect and a strange cold rationality begins to seep in with no other input to be had.

_ You were upset. You didn’t tell Magnus you were leaving. He probably thinks you’re on the roof or in your office. No one knows where you are and without any physical symptoms Jace may not be able to feel you either. You, if you’re not dying right now as a consequence of being totally disconnected from your body, are lying at the edge of a giant forest famous for its feral monsters.  _

_ Make your peace. _

Just like that the rationality is sucked under a new tide of roaring fear.

-

Magnus is tired. 

The seelie’s have made every effort to force him to break the covenant of a host and keeping his cool has taken everything he has as he sees the last of them out. Alexander had disappeared hours ago, with flashing eyes that only barely covered his hurt. 

Magnus is tired and heartsick and needs to find his husband. He decides to start with the roof of their building, though he’s not hopeful. The seelie’s had realized Alec was a weak point quickly and made it their business to harass him so anywhere connected to their home wouldn’t be safe.

Sure enough, the roof is empty. 

He closes his eyes and then whirls, if his rude guests have driven Alec  _ back  _ to his office when he’s already putting in back-breaking amounts of work, he’s going to have a personal chat with their queen.

Magnus barely gets back to the living room when the sound of his phone draws his attention. Maybe Alec is calling to check for the all clear. He sweeps the device up from where it’s been charging and frowns at the screen. Jace so rarely calls him.

“Hello Chase, now isn’t the best time.”

“ _ Magnus, where’s Alec?” _

Jace is serious and to the point, which tells Magnus immediately something is wrong.

“I’m looking for him now. We had unfortunate guests and he left. What’s happened?”

_ “I don’t know. Something felt weird about an hour ago, but not like he was hurt. I thought it was fine, maybe he was sleeping with how muted the bond is, but then I tried to, uh, I dunno, reach out. There was nothing, just the vague sense he’s alive, and then I tried to focus on his thoughts, which is really hard because the bond is mostly physical and...Magnus he’s out of his mind afraid.” _

“I’m opening a portal for you. Where are you?”

_ “Alec’s old room.” _

So Jace knew Magnus would need him. He snaps open a portal, swallowing his fear. There will be time to break down later, when Alexander is safe.

Jace comes through, white knuckled grip tight over the rune on his hip. He’s kitted out for a fight and Magnus can see the same resolve in him, keep it together until they have Alec.

-

The track had been easy, so they knew he hadn’t been taken by anyone and no one was blocking them. 

They follow the blue thread to the edge of Brocelind, to the archery range Alec came to when he needed to blow off steam.

Laying perfectly still, breathing like he’s just napping, is Alexander. 

“Alec!” Jace hurries to him, shaking him a little. He’s perfectly relaxed as he rolls with the motion, not even the involuntary muscles working to prevent the movement.

Magnus stares at him and then he’s laying a layer of magic in a wide circle, searching for anything amiss. He gets back two things.

Alexander himself and a water bottle from their home. 

“What’s wrong?” Jace asks, as the magic tells Magnus what he needs to know.

“He’s been drugged. One of the seelie’s must have slipped him  _ Somnus Infinitum _ . It’s the potion Sleeping Beauty is based on.”

Jace makes an impatient gesture, “Alright, so he’s sleeping. You kiss him, ta-dah!”

Magnus shakes his head slowly, “No. He’s not asleep.  _ Somnus Infinitum  _ steals the victims awareness, the ability to hear, speak, feel, smell, see, or otherwise conceptualize that you exist short of your own thoughts. Alexander is very much awake but he can’t even feel himself draw breath. It’s only the mercy of the magic that keeps his body from shutting down completely.”

Jace stares at his parabatai in horror, “That’s why he felt,” He pauses, focusing intently as his gaze goes hazy, “feels. He feels so afraid. He’s so scared Magnus.”

Jace’s voice is very small and Magnus’ stomach churns.

“Kiss him.” Jace says, coming back to himself.

“I can’t. That part is mostly made up. The antidote comes from the crushed berries of a plant found in the seelie realm that stimulates the senses to such an extreme it can counteract the magic. It’s what mundanes based Ecstasy on. So unless you happen to be carrying seelie party drugs, we’re going to have to make some calls.”

Jace carefully lifts Alexander, moving so his limp body won’t overextend anything as it shifts with his strides.

“How long can he be like this?”

Magnus opens a portal, too New York this time as it’s much easier to find seelie  _ away  _ from Idris. 

“Sleeping Beauty had a century. Alexander might have a few more hours. Eventually his body will catch up to the absence of the impulses that make it work and-” Magnus fights his anguish back into the dark box it is so desperately trying to claw out of, “His heart will stop.”

Jace’s lips go thin and his grip tightens a little.

“Let’s go.” 

-

Alec comes back to himself explosively. 

His senses returned to him all at once give him an avenue to express the raving terror that’s been feeding itself since he realized he was going to die.

He goes from a still sleeper, face completely relaxed, to a wild thing.

He throws himself off the bed, away from the feeling of fabric and solidness under him, landing on the floor with a painful cracking sound from his knees as he scrambles, totally uncoordinated, hands landing on hands and legs tangling, as far as he can.

He’s screaming the entire time, just a constant  _ sound  _ that seems to shape near-words. He hits the wall and the screams get louder, his eyes are huge, rolling and he throws himself away from the wall.

Magnus watches, shocked, until he registers the blood mixing with the spittle from Alec’s lips.

_ He’s going to swallow his tongue at this rate. _

He’s only grateful no one else is in the room, though he can hear Jace shouting from somewhere else in the building, no doubt sprinting toward them. 

Magnus throws a shield around Alec, taking all of his senses but sight. He calms immediately, eyes frantic. Slowly he gives back hearing, but not speech or feeling or movement yet.

Magnus comes to kneel in front of him, hands up and speaks slowly.

“It’s okay love. You’re okay Alexander. You were drugged but you’re here, this is real. You have a body, you can touch things again. Can you stay calm if I give you back your senses?”

Alexander stares at him.

Very slowly he blinks and Magnus realizes he’s not left him a way to answer. He returns speech.

Alec doesn’t scream, but in a hoarse voice answers, “Yes. I-Can you turn the lights off?”

Magnus immediately darkens the room, only for the door to fly open as Jace, completely naked and with soap in his hair, crashes in.

“Alec!”

Alexander can’t flinch so he just screams instead, one short one this time and Magnus curses. 

He snaps his fingers and Jace is clean, dry, and dressed. The door shuts and a ward goes up.

“Welcome back Jace. Sit down and shut up, you’re overwhelming him.”

Jace, for the first time ever, does as he’s told.

Alec closes his eyes, “Give me back my body.”

Magnus releases the last of his magic and Alec slumps immediately. He looks at Magnus in the dark and Magnus lets his glamour drop so Alexander can see him better, the shine on his eyes giving him away.

Alexander shudders and then he’s crawling into Magnus’ lap, whimpering in a way that Magnus doesn’t think Alec was capable of before today. He sticks his hand toward Jace a moment later and Jace joins them on the floor.

“Darling are you sure?” Magnus says, softly. After nothing so much contact has to be overwhelming.

Alexander is nodding though, “Yes. Need you both, make me feel grounded, real. Please.”

Magnus doesn’t think twice then, just shuffles them around, grabs Jace’s wrist, and opens a portal under them. 

The three of them drop through, straight into the bed in the loft, the lights off and the curtains drawn. Alec makes a positive sound and Magnus can see that Jace barely noticed the change, eyes glued to Alexander.

“Here.” He prods Jace back a little and maneuvers them so Alec is laying between them.

“Better?”

Alec nods, “Just...Just let me find my body again and I’ll be alright.”

Magnus and Jace’s eyes meet over Alec’s tense form, they both know that’s a lie. 


End file.
